Religions 101: A Beginner's Guide to How It All Started

by John Bytheway
July 13, 2005

Why Are There So Many Churches?

Obtain a knowledge of history, and of countries, and of kingdoms, of laws of God and man, and all this for the salvation of Zion. —D&C 93:53

I'm not afraid to admit it. When I was in eighth grade I took a Home Economics class. Yup. A class about sewing and cooking. Some friends of mine wanted to take it, and when I asked them why, they said, "Because you get to eat." That did it for me. I love to eat. The only problem was that we had to eat our own cooking. Gross.
Eighth grade Home Economics stands out in my memory not because of our gourmet dishes, but because of the friendly but spirited discussions we always had at our table as we sat down to consume our "burnt offerings." There were four of us, three Latter-day Saints and a Presbyterian. We were good friends and remained good friends throughout high school. My Presbyterian friend knew so much. Sometimes I felt like he knew more about my church than I did. When he would ask about our beliefs on certain things, I was forced to rely on the vast knowledge in my eighth-grade brain. I knew many answers, but I really became curious about the larger picture. Why are there so many churches, anyway? Where did they all come from? I didn't know. Who was Martin Luther? Who was John Calvin? I didn't know. What about Catholics, or Methodists, or Baptists, or Lutherans? When did all those churches start, and how do they fit into the overall picture? I didn't know. In fact, I didn't have a clue.
Knowledge is power, and I was powerless. Answers to all these questions were available without charge from my Dad's own library, but they required an action that causes many people great physical and emotional discomfort—turning off the TV, and opening up a book. (Fortunately for you, this is no problem; you're already reading a book.) I knew that the scriptures would increase my testimony, but I had no idea that my testimony could grow by leaps and bounds if I studied a not-so-popular school subject . . . can I say it? . . . History. Yes, HISTORY!
Well, I studied, and boy, did I learn. Would you like to know what I found out? Because I'd love to tell you. Get comfortable in your chair and enjoy. And if you have a friendly discussion group like I had in eighth grade Home Economics, now you'll have a little more power to answer! I'm excited to share this information with you, because I can almost guarantee that you will say to yourself "I didn't know that" about fifteen times. Isn't it exciting to know that in a few more minutes (the time it will take to read this chapter), you'll know fifteen things you didn't know before? That is the unique thrill of discovery. May it be a lifelong pursuit for you, my friend.
Okay, let's get to work. We're going to have to review a few basics, but you'll see later on why it's important. Get your scriptures, and accompany me through the New Testament church, the Great Apostasy, the Dark Ages, the Reformation, and the Restoration.

The New Testament Church: 30 A.D. to 325 A.D.

Jesus came to earth, organized his church, and ordained twelve apostles. But what would happen if one of the apostles was killed? Would they replace him? As you know, in about 30 A.D. Jesus was crucified, then was resurrected three days later. He stayed with the apostles for a time and then ascended to heaven. Judas, who had betrayed Jesus, committed suicide. This left only eleven apostles. The remaining apostles met to fill the vacancy:

And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place. And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. (Acts 1:24- 26) Apparently, the Lord wanted the organization to continue with twelve apostles, not eleven. Notice also that the apostles did not choose a new apostle without the Lord's help, but they prayed for inspiration to ensure that the new member would be called of God, as they were. Hebrews 5:4 states, "And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron" (see also John 15:16).

Since Old Testament times, prophets had known that the day would come when the true gospel would not be on the earth. There would be a "falling away," or an "apostasy."

Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it. (Amos 8:11-12)

God knew that this apostasy would take place, and had prepared for the gospel to be restored. Peter told the Jews:

He shall send Jesus Christ, . . . whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. (Acts 3:20- 21; emphasis added)

Restitution means "restoration" (of course, something must be lost before it can be restored). Many believed that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ would be very soon after his resurrection and ascension. Paul wrote to them and said:

Be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first. (2 Thessalonians 2:2-3; emphasis added)

Interestingly, the phrase translated into English as "falling away" comes from the Greek word apostasia. After Jesus was resurrected, he told the apostles, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). This the apostles did, and except for John they were all killed. John Foxe's Book of Martyrs accounts for the death of the apostles as follows: Peter was crucified head downward at Rome, James (the son of Zebedee) was beheaded, John was banished to the Isle of Patmos, Bartholomew was beaten, crucified, and then beheaded. James (the son of Alphaeus) was stoned and beaten to death. Matthew was slain with a halberd. Andrew, Simon (Zelotes), Thaddeus, and Philip were crucified. Thomas was killed with a spear. Matthias was stoned and then beheaded. Paul was beheaded in Rome by Nero.
The apostle John was taken out of the ministry, and nothing is heard of him after about 101 A.D. Elder Mark E. Petersen explains that John was not permitted to remain in Patmos because wickedness had nearly taken over the church. Doctrines and ordinances were changed, authority was ignored, and sin became rampant, even among the members of the church (Mark E. Petersen, Which Church Is Right? [Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1974], 12).
False teachers and false doctrines arose. This is confirmed in the writings of Eusebius, an ancient historian who lived about 260- 339 A.D.

The Church continued until then [close of the first century] as a pure and uncorrupt virgin, whilst if there were any at all that attempted to pervert the sound doctrine of the saving gospel, they were yet skulking in dark retreats: but when the sacred choir of Apostles became extinct and the generation of those that had been privileged to hear their inspired wisdom had passed away, then also the combinations of impious errors arose by the fraud and delusions of false teachers. These also as there were none of the apostles left, henceforth attempted without shame, to preach their false doctrines against the gospel truth (Eusebius of Caesaria, as quoted in B. H. Roberts, The Falling Away [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1931], 29; emphasis added).

A modern historian (non-LDS) agrees with Eusebius that the death of the apostles marked the beginning of the apostasy:

With the close of the New Testament records, and the death of the last surviving apostle, the history of the church passes from its sacred to its purely human phase. The miraculous gifts which attested the Divine mission of the apostles ceased; not indeed by any formal record of their withdrawal, but by the clear evidence that they were possessed no longer (Dr. Phillip Smith, as quoted in Roberts, The Falling Away, 83.).

During the next two centuries, the church drifted without direction. Horrible government-sponsored persecutions were inflicted on the Christians, and they were forced underground (literally underground, into the catacombs beneath Rome!). The simple and pure doctrines of the gospel were changed and mixed with pagan religions (Greek and Roman mythology) and the philosophies of men. Disagreements arose on many doctrines, including the proper way to baptize and the nature of God.
In the middle of the third century, a man named Cyprian, who was the Bishop of Carthage, baptized by sprinkling instead of immersion when the person being baptized had some physical weakness. Sprinkling baptism caught on and became a widely accepted practice. A few centuries later, the practice of baptizing infants began (See James E. Talmage, The Great Apostasy [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1968], 118-119).

The Great Apostasy: 325 A.D. to 1045 A.D.

Persecutions continued, but Christianity would not go away. The emperor of Rome at the time, Constantine, decided to recognize Christianity as a legal religion. Constantine called a council for all the Bishops in the world in 325 A.D. to resolve several issues, including a disagreement about the nature of God. Some, swayed by the influence of Greek philosophy, argued that the Father and the Son were of the same substance, and others believed they were separate individuals. The council, which was convened in a place called Nicaea, came up with a statement of beliefs that became known as the Nicene Creed. By vote, and with some pressure from Constantine, the doctrine of the Trinity emerged. That doctrine states that there are three persons in the Godhead who make up one God; and that God the Father and Jesus Christ are not only one in purpose, but one in person. The doctrine of the Trinity was basically a product of debate and compromise. There was no revelation, no authority, no attempt at inspiration.
Thus we can see that only a few centuries after Christ, the apostasy was essentially complete. Priesthood leadership and authority were lost, the nature of God was changed by vote, the mode of baptism was altered, and Constantine, an "uninspired, unbaptized sun-worshiper who committed murder within his own family," was appointing new Bishops (Petersen, Which Church Is Right?, 12). Constantine's plan to unite the empire was successful, and the new state-sponsored church would eventually be called the "universal" or "Catholic" church. It is important to recognize that the Catholic Church did not cause the apostasy. From our point of view, they simply inherited it.
That was essentially the only Christian church in existence for several centuries, its history characterized by power struggles, rivalries, and corruption. A historian describing these years said:

It seemed impossible that things could become worse; yet Rome had still to see Benedict IX, A.D. 1033, a boy of less than twelve years, raised to the apostolic throne. Of this pontiff, one of his successors, Victor III, declared that his life was so shameful, so foul, so execrable, that he shuddered to describe it. He ruled like a captain of banditti rather than a prelate. The people at last, unable to bear his adulteries, homicides and abominations any longer, rose up against him. In despair of maintaining his position, he put up the papacy to auction. It was bought by a presbyter named John, who became Gregory VI, A.D. 1045 (John William Draper, quoted in Roberts, The Falling Away, 83).

The Dark Ages: 1045 A.D. to 1440 A.D.

The church had changed from a persecuted church to a persecuting church. More basic doctrines were altered. Instead of a worship service where the members participated, the Mass became more of a performance with much mystery and ceremony. In the year 1054, centuries-old rivalries concerning the city from which the church should be governed resulted in the split of the church into the Roman Catholic Church, with headquarters in Rome, and the Greek Orthodox Church, with headquarters in Constantinople, Greece.
The western church developed faster than the eastern church. The Roman church filled Europe but was ruled from Rome. Those who disagreed with the doctrines or practices of the church were called heretics and were usually tortured and killed. Not surprisingly, these many centuries when the "Light of the World" was gone are referred to by almost all historians as the "Dark Ages."
Very few copies of the scriptures were in existence. Books had to be copied by hand and were very expensive. The church actually discouraged reading the scriptures, reserving that right for the clergy only. In about 1440, the printing press was invented. This meant that copies of the scriptures would be more available. You would think that this advance would be welcomed by the clergy, but interestingly enough, the church was violently opposed to the development of printing. Elder Bruce R. McConkie states:

Few tools were more effective than printing in paving the way for the great revival of learning, for the religious reformation, and for the breaking away of peoples and nations from religious domination. Without the discovery of movable type in about 1440 A.D. the barrier of gross darkness covering the apostate world could scarce have been pierced. One of the first books published was the Gutenberg Bible in 1456 A.D.
Perhaps no important discovery in world history ever faced such intense and bitter opposition as arose over the use and spread of printing. Civil and ecclesiastical tyrants feared the loss of their ill-held and evilly-exercised powers should knowledge and truth be made available to people generally. "We must root out printing," said the Vicar of Croydon from his pulpit, "or printing will root us out" (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2nd Ed. [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1979], 716).

The Reformation: 1440 A.D. to 1830 A.D.

Despite the opposition, printing flourished, and the scriptures were read by an ever-increasing number of people. There was a great revival of learning and of the arts. This period marks the end of the Dark Ages and is often called the renaissance (meaning "rebirth").
At this point we begin to see the hand of the Lord preparing the world for the "restitution of all things" spoken of by Peter. In 1492, Christopher Columbus set off to find a shorter route to India. This event is prophesied in the Book of Mormon:

And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land. (1 Nephi 13:12)

Did Christopher Columbus know that the Spirit was working on him? Let's see what he says:

Our Lord unlocked my mind, sent me upon the sea, and gave me fire for the deed. Those who heard of my enterprise called it foolish, mocked me, and laughed. But who can doubt but that the Holy Ghost inspired me?

As time passed, more and more people were studying the scriptures, and more and more people were asking questions. (Isn't it interesting what happens when people read their scriptures?) A monk and university professor named Martin Luther became concerned about certain abuses and practices in the church. In 1517, he prepared a list of 95 theses (subjects for debate) and nailed it to the door of the All Saints Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
The Catholic church did not appreciate Luther's complaining, and eventually he was forced into hiding. If Luther had not had friends in high places, he probably would have been killed, as were many others who protested against the church. Luther hid himself away and continued to write. Some agreed with Luther; others opposed him. King Henry VIII of England published a book in defense of the church for which he was awarded the title "Defender of the Faith," a title still carried by British kings. Luther gained a following, and his movement eventually resulted in the formation of a "new" church called the Lutheran Church. Martin Luther "protested," and is recognized as the first "protestant." His movement marks the beginning of the Reformation. Actually, it was not Luther's original intent to form a new church; he just wanted to reform the old one. He said:

I have sought nothing beyond reforming the Church in conformity with the Holy Scriptures. The spiritual powers have been not only corrupted by sin, but absolutely destroyed; so that there is now nothing in them but a depraved reason and a will that is the enemy and opponent of God. I simply say that Christianity has ceased to exist among those who should have preserved it (As quoted in The Falling Away and Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ Foretold [Salt Lake City, The Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints]).

Tension had been mounting for some time between the church in Rome and the governments of some European nations. Some of the taxes collected by these governments were sent to Rome. Tensions reached a peak in England when, in 1529, King Henry VIII wanted a divorce from his wife, Catherine of Aragon. The pope would not give Henry a divorce. So, in 1535, parliament declared Henry VIII the supreme head of the church in England. Thus, Henry VIII became head of both church and state in England, giving him the authority to grant his own divorce. Some in the church in England refused to recognize this action, and Henry had many of them executed. Ties with the Roman church were formally broken, and the Church of England—also called the Anglican church, and in America the Episcopalian church—was born.
Another group, observing that in the scriptures baptism was performed only for those capable of repenting, was eventually formed into a church by John Smyth in 1609. This group performed baptisms first by pouring and later by immersion. Others referred to them as "Anabaptists" or re-baptizers. Persecutions raged against them, and many Anabaptists were publicly drowned. The Anabaptists are seen by many as the beginning of the Baptist movement.
Just eleven years later, in 1620, the Mayflower set sail for America, its passengers in search of religious freedom. Seven ancestors of Joseph Smith were on board.
In 1639, in Providence, Rhode Island, a Puritan minister named Roger Williams founded the first Baptist church in America. In this remarkable statement, we see that Williams knew that a reformation of religion was not enough—a restoration was needed:

There is no regularly constituted church on earth, nor any person qualified to administer any church ordinances; nor can there be until new apostles are sent by the Great Head of the Church for whose coming I am seeking (Roger Williams, quoted in Legrand Richards, A Marvelous Work and a Wonder [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1976], 27).

John Calvin and John Knox were the forces behind the protestant movement called Presbyterianism, which was formed about 1649. The word Presbyterian refers to a representative form of church government. In Greek, presbyteros means elder. Calvin and Knox formed a church government similar to that which had been practiced in the first century. That is how the Presbyterian church came into existence.
John and Charles Wesley were brothers who attended Oxford University in England. They formed the "Holy Club," but were nicknamed "methodists" by the student body because of their strict and methodical rules of conduct in their club meetings. John Wesley did not intend to organize a new church, but gained many followers after he began to preach in about 1738. The first Methodist church in America was formally established in 1784. How did John Wesley feel about traditional Christianity? He explains:
It does not appear that these extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghost were common in the Church for more than two or three centuries. We seldom hear of them after that fatal period when the Emperor Constantine called himself a Christian. . . . From this time they almost totally ceased. . . . The Christians had no more of the Spirit of Christ than the other heathens. . . . This was the real cause why the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghost were no longer to be found in the Christian Church; because the Christians were turned Heathen again, and had only a dead form left.
In 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed, starting the wheels in motion for America to be self-governing. The writer of the Declaration was Thomas Jefferson. (His face is on the nickel in your pocket—unless you're from Canada.) Read what Jefferson has to say and ask yourself if he was inspired:

The religion builders have so distorted and deformed the doctrines of Jesus, so muffled them in mysticisms, fancies and falsehoods, have caricatured them into forms so inconceivable, as to shock reasonable thinkers. . . . Happy in the prospect of a restoration of primitive Christianity, I must leave to younger persons to encounter and lop off the false branches which have been engrafted into it by the mythologists of the middle and modern ages. Men like Luther, Calvin, and Wesley all had a portion of the Spirit of God. We remember the reformers as noble men who sought to benefit mankind. Their efforts put the scriptures into the hands of common people, and people who read the scriptures do uncommon things.

William Tyndale, who translated the Bible into English in 1526, said to those who opposed his work, "If God spare my life, . . . I will cause a boy that driveth the plough shall know more of the scripture than thou dost."
Speaking of the reformers, President Thomas S. Monson said:

Such were the teachings and lives of the great reformers. Their deeds were heroic, their contributions many, their sacrifices great—but they did not restore the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Of the reformers one could ask, "Was their sacrifice in vain? Was their struggle futile?" I answer with a resounding "No!" The Holy Bible was now within the grasp of the people. Each man could better find his way. Oh, if only all could read and all could understand. But some could read, and others could hear; and every man had access to God through prayer.

The Restoration: 1820 to the Present

Only fourteen years after the Bill of Rights was ratified in the newly independent United States, guaranteeing religious freedom, a boy was born in Sharon, Vermont. There is not room to retell the story here; please put this book down and read it for yourself in Joseph Smith—History in the Pearl of Great Price.
In short, young Joseph, a "boy that driveth the plough," became confused by the many religions that argued and contended one with another. After reading and pondering the fifth verse in the first chapter of James, he decided to "ask of God." His question was not, "Is there a true church?" Apparently, he thought one of them might be true. His question was, "Which one should I join?" In response to Joseph's prayer, the heavens were opened and Father in Heaven once again spoke to his children on the earth. Later, other heavenly messengers visited the earth, including John the Baptist and Peter, James, and John. The true nature of God as a literal Father in Heaven was revealed, priesthood power with the authority to baptize was restored, and a "voice from the dust," the Book of Mormon, containing the "everlasting gospel," was brought forth by an angel (see Revelation 14:6). All things that had been altered or lost were restored.
The excitement of the Restoration is captured in the words of a favorite Latter-day Saint hymn:
The Spirit of God like a fire is burning,

The latter-day glory begins to come forth.

The visions and blessings of old are returning,

And angels are coming to visit the earth!

(Hymns, no. 2)

You, my friend, as you've been told so many times, are part of the Restoration. This is your great spiritual heritage and mission! But we'll come back to that later. Let's get back to our original question.

Why Are There So Many Churches?

Originally, there was the church of Jesus Christ. But, as prophesied, the church was taken from the earth. People were left to interpret the scriptures without the aid of a prophet. The philosophies of men corrupted the pure doctrines of Christ, and the church fell into apostasy and into the Dark Ages. At the close of the Dark Ages, "the spirit of inspiration rested upon [the reformers]," said Elder Bruce R. McConkie, "causing them to rebel against the religious evils of the day and seek to make the Bible and other truth available to all who would receive such." The Reformation resulted in many different churches all trying to return to the pure doctrine of Christ. However, none of them had the proper authority, and most of them retained ideas and philosophies from the Roman church, which had been corrupted centuries earlier.

Why Do We Say We Are the Only True Church?

Because that's what Jesus Christ called us: "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth" (D&C 1:30). Not only the true church, but the only true and living church. It is living because he lives, and he is the head of it. Under his guidance and direction, his church was re-established on the earth. A reformation wasn't enough. A restoration was needed.
We make a lot of enemies with our contention that there is only one true church, and we need to be careful. We must always recognize that there are wonderful, Christlike people who are honest in heart who are members of other churches, or not members of any church at all. "We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may" (11th Article of Faith).
Coupled with this belief is the mission given to the original apostles that has been given again in our day: "Go ye into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature, acting in the authority which I have given you, baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (D&C 68:8). President George Albert Smith helps us understand the attitude we should have toward our friends of other faiths:
Today as I stand here, I realize that in this city, in the Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church, the Methodist, the Baptist, the Episcopalian, and the other churches, I have brothers and sisters that I love. They are all my Father's children. He loves them and he expects me and he expects you, to let our lights so shine that these other sons and daughters of his, seeing our good works, will be constrained to accept all the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. How have others reacted to our claim of being the only true church? Some of the responses are quite interesting. Orson F. Whitney relates this experience:

Many years ago a learned man, a member of the Roman Catholic Church, came to Utah and spoke from the stand of the Salt Lake Tabernacle. I became well-acquainted with him, and we conversed freely and frankly. A great scholar, with perhaps a dozen languages at his tongue's end, he seemed to know all about theology, law, literature, science and philosophy. One day he said to me: "You Mormons are all ignoramuses. You don't even know the strength of your own position. It is so strong that there is only one other tenable in the whole Christian world, and that is the position of the Catholic Church. The issue is between Catholicism and Mormonism. If we are right, you are wrong; if you are right, we are wrong; and that's all there is to it. The Protestants haven't a leg to stand on. For, if we are wrong, they are wrong with us, since they were a part of us and went out from us; while if we are right, they are apostates whom we cut off long ago. If we have the apostolic succession from St. Peter, as we claim, there is no need of Joseph Smith and Mormonism; but if we have not that succession, then such a man as Joseph Smith was necessary, and Mormonism's attitude is the only consistent one. It is either the perpetuation of the gospel from ancient times, or the restoration of the gospel in latter days."

From what we have already seen, many of the reformers were convinced of the apostasy, at least to some degree. How would they respond to the message of the Restoration? How would the Founding Fathers respond? The Founding Fathers did respond! Wilford Woodruff reports:

I will here say, before closing, that two weeks before I left St. George, the spirits of the dead gathered around me, wanting to know why we did not redeem them. Said they, "You have had the use of the Endowment House for a number of years, and yet nothing has ever been done for us. We laid the foundation of the government you now enjoy, and we never apostatized from it, but we remained true to it and were faithful to God." These were the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and they waited on me for two days and two nights. I thought it very singular, that notwithstanding so much work had been done, and yet nothing had been done for them. The thought never entered my heart, from the fact, I suppose, that heretofore our minds were reaching after our more immediate friends and relatives. I straightway went into the baptismal font and called upon Brother McCallister to baptize me for the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and fifty other eminent men, making one hundred in all, including John Wesley, Columbus, and others; I then baptized him for every President of the United States, except three; and when their cause is just, somebody will do the work for them.

Would You Have Accepted Jesus?

At times I have pondered about living in the days of Jesus. I've wondered if I would have been open-minded enough to believe in him, or if I would have been skeptical and hard-hearted like the scribes and Pharisees. I find great comfort in this statement of Elder Bruce R. McConkie:

Who will honor the name of Joseph Smith and accept the gospel restored through his instrumentality?
We answer: The same people who would have believed the words of the Lord Jesus and the ancient Apostles and prophets had they lived in their day.
If you believe the words of Joseph Smith, you would have believed what Jesus and the ancients said.
If you reject Joseph Smith and his message, you would have rejected Peter and Paul and their message.

Yes, you would have accepted Jesus because you have believed Joseph Smith. Moroni told the Prophet Joseph that his "name should be had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds, and tongues" (Joseph Smith-History 1:33). Although not everyone has accepted Joseph Smith as a prophet, many have marveled at his influence. A writer from the New York Herald visited Joseph Smith and published this in 1842:

Joe Smith is undoubtedly one of the greatest characters of the age. He indicates as much talent, originality and moral courage as Mahomet, Odin or any of the great spirits that have hitherto produced revolutions of past ages. . . . While modern philosophy, which believes in nothing but what you can touch, is overspreading the Atlantic States, Joe Smith is creating a spiritual system, combined also with morals and industry, that may change the destiny of the race.

The London Morning Chronicle published this in 1851:

It cannot be denied that Joseph Smith was one of the most extraordinary persons of his time, a man of rude genius, who accomplished a much greater work than he knew; and whose name, whatever he may have been whilst living, will take its place among the notabilities of the world.

The Count Leo Tolstoy once said, "If Mormonism is able to endure unmodified until it reaches the third and fourth generation, it is destined to become the greatest power the world has ever known."
Wow. My "academic" testimony continues to grow as I study the apostasy and the Restoration. An academic testimony is based on things you believe because they make sense—because they're logical. Once you learn about those things, you can pray about them and gain a spiritual testimony. And here's the exciting part: the more you learn (academic), the more the Spirit can confirm to your heart (spiritual). Or, you can sit around, watch TV and read comics, and wonder if you have a testimony. I know you won't do that, because you're reading a book right now! Read on, my friend, read on!
I give my witness of the Restoration. The gospel is true. The Holy Ghost testifies of it, and so does history. We are privileged to be here during this time. We are part of the Restoration, and we're not here by accident! This means we have a great responsibility. President Ezra Taft Benson tells us of our task:

For nearly six thousand years, God has held you in reserve to make your appearance in the final days before the Second Coming. Every previous gospel dispensation has drifted into apostasy, but ours will not. . . . God has saved for the final inning some of his strongest children, who will help bear off the kingdom triumphant.

And that is where you come in, for you are the generation that must be prepared to meet your God. I hope this has helped to answer some of your questions. I wish I had known more about these things when I was in high school! The scriptures tell us to "obtain a knowledge of history, and of countries, and of kingdoms, of laws of God and man, and all this for the salvation of Zion" (D&C 93:53). Knowledge is power, and there is so much to learn! Dare to be different, turn off the TV, get into the "best books," especially the scriptures and the writings of the living prophets, and prepare for your role in the final days before the Second Coming (see D&C 88:79, 118; 90:15).